Were We Wrong?
In our note on 1/26/21, we mentioned that one possible reason that the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra’s display was being touted by Samsung as a new display that can emit ‘brighter light with less energy, which can improve the usage time of smartphones…’, was the potential use of new material developed by Universal Display (OLED) that could enhance the stability and brightness of OLED displays, while reducing their susceptibility to ‘burn-in’. We made this supposition based on data in UDC IP filings and the language used by Samsung when describing the few details they gave as to the technology used in this new display. While this was, and is, speculation on our part, we note that it might not be the only reason that the display in the S21 Ultra is ‘better’ than other Samsung smartphone displays, but we stick to the concept until we are proven wrong.
Solus Advanced Materials (336370.KS), a recent spin-off of South Korea’s Doosan Group (000150.KS), has been producing OLED materials, particularly Hole and Electron Blocking layer materials that keep electrons from passing through key emissive layers too quickly, reducing their output. The Solus material called aETL has been supplied to Samsung Display (pvt) for the last eight years for use in its small panel OLED displays and is one of the materials in its M11 OLED stack, the most recent iteration of materials used in Galaxy smartphone displays. Improvements in this material, which is exclusive to Samsung Display, could also been part of the improvement in the Galaxy S21 Ultra, but we expect that the Solus material while a contributor, is not the only factor in the S21 Ultra’s improved display.
That said, Solus also mentioned that they are expanding their supply of materials for OLED TVs, which some take to mean for Samsung Display’s QD/OLED project that is under development. As the technology for Samsung Display’s QD/OLED project has now been approved by parent Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), with tacit timelines for commercial product slated for later this year or early 2022, we expect suppliers to begin to ramp production capabilities for new materials relatively soon. How different these materials will have to be relative to what is being used currently for SDC’s small panel OLED displays or even LG Display’s (LPL) WOLED remains to be seen, but the approval of Samsung, as the likely largest buyer of QD/OLED panels, was necessary for the potential infrastructure to develop.
Solus Advanced Materials (336370.KS), a recent spin-off of South Korea’s Doosan Group (000150.KS), has been producing OLED materials, particularly Hole and Electron Blocking layer materials that keep electrons from passing through key emissive layers too quickly, reducing their output. The Solus material called aETL has been supplied to Samsung Display (pvt) for the last eight years for use in its small panel OLED displays and is one of the materials in its M11 OLED stack, the most recent iteration of materials used in Galaxy smartphone displays. Improvements in this material, which is exclusive to Samsung Display, could also been part of the improvement in the Galaxy S21 Ultra, but we expect that the Solus material while a contributor, is not the only factor in the S21 Ultra’s improved display.
That said, Solus also mentioned that they are expanding their supply of materials for OLED TVs, which some take to mean for Samsung Display’s QD/OLED project that is under development. As the technology for Samsung Display’s QD/OLED project has now been approved by parent Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), with tacit timelines for commercial product slated for later this year or early 2022, we expect suppliers to begin to ramp production capabilities for new materials relatively soon. How different these materials will have to be relative to what is being used currently for SDC’s small panel OLED displays or even LG Display’s (LPL) WOLED remains to be seen, but the approval of Samsung, as the likely largest buyer of QD/OLED panels, was necessary for the potential infrastructure to develop.
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